Power plants, such as those that employ a nuclear reactor, generate electrical power. Most of the generated power is transmitted to remote consumers. However, a portion of the generated electrical power is locally distributed to the power plant. The locally distributed power is used to operate the plant and provide safety-related functionality. More specifically, the locally distributed power is used to power the various electrical, mechanical, and/or pneumatic/hydraulic systems that are needed to run and ensure the efficient and safe generation of power.
In conventional designs for nuclear reactor plants, locally distributed electrical power is required to perform safety-related functions under normal conditions and to safely shutdown various systems following a loss of alternating current (AC) power. Power plants may employ Class 1E direct current (DC) components and systems for such safety-related tasks. Such Class 1E DC systems are typically required to remain operational when the power plant is generating power. Accordingly, in conventional plant designs, maintaining Class 1E hardware, when the plant is generating power, may involve considerable risk to the plant and/or plant personnel. To ensure that safety-related functions remain operational when the plant is generating power and decrease risk to the plant personnel, best practices in conventional plant designs involve maintaining Class 1E hardware during plant outages. It is for these and other concerns that the following disclosure is provided.